Redemption: Glamour
by Leon Stryfe
Summary: This story is an alternate take on Season Six. Willow's spell to bring Buffy back to life didn't exactly work, and now the gang must face the trials of the Hellmouth without the aid of their slayer.
1. Redemption: Prologue

_**AN**:This story is an alternate take on Season Six. Willow's spell to bring Buffy back to life didn't exactly work, and now the gang must go on without her. The story picks up towards the end of Bargaining part 2. Everything up until this point has happened exactly like in that episode, with the exception of all the Buffy scenes, as she isn't around. The Scoobies still end up in the dead-end alley where Razor confronts them, but because the demon's aren't chasing Buffy, they arrive later than in the show, explaining the time difference._

_Standard disclaimers apply, I don't own the characters, I'm not making a profit , etc._

_**Update - 30 June, 2013: **__I am going back through some of my older stories and correcting several of the mistakes that I made as a less experienced author. I am also making some stylistic changes to better make some of the older stories meld with the newer ones. If you're going back through __these__ stories and notice a difference (hopefully for the better), this is why. Nothing major has changed, I'm simply updating them to my current level.  
_

* * *

Spike and Dawn drove down the debris littered road atop the vampire's newly acquired motorcycle. Dawn clung tightly to his waist, still wearing the faux football helmet Spike had given her, "for protection".

"There! What's that?" Dawn motioned ahead, off to their right. Spike slowed the bike to a stop before he and Dawn got off. They walked forward together toward the motionless, ruined torso of the Buffybot.

"It's just a machine, Dawn," Spike said quietly, standing behind Dawn.

"I know," was her equally quiet reply. Dawn walked up to the broken robot and knelt beside it. She reached out to touch the machine's face, stopping suddenly with a gasp as the Buffybot turned its head toward her.

"Dawn." The robots voice were weak, as if talking were too much of a strain on its already taxed systems. "You're my sister, Dawn." During the exchange, Spike walked over to a nearby bonfire, spotting more pieces of the Buffybot.

"I love you, Dawn. I'll never leave you. We'll be together forev-" The Buffybot was suddenly silent, its power finally depleted. Dawn was motionless for a moment, then she stood, turned around, and fled, leaving the scene of horror behind her.

Spike stood holding a leg of the Buffybot cluelessly a few paces away.

"Look what those filthy buggers done to you," Spike murmured as he examined the extent of the damage to the limb. His volume rose as he spoke again.

"Willow's slap and paste job's not gonna do the trick this time. Robot's done." Spike was quiet a moment, waiting for a response from Dawn. When none came, he raised his voice again.

"Hey?" When again no response came his way, Spike turned around, looking for his young ward.

"Little Bit?" Spike's voice became frantic, as fear creeped its way into him. Seeing and hearing nothing, Spike screamed at the top of his lungs.

"_Dawn!_"

Dawn, already long out of sight, ignored Spike's cries and continued running.

* * *

Dawn stood atop the ruined platform that her sister had leaped off of just months ago. She was looking down at the ground below, peering through the hole that the dimensional rift had caused, that _her_ blood had opened. Spike called her name, but she ignored him, letting his words drift away with the wind blowing through her hair.

"Bit, get away from there," Spike said as he finally caught up to her. "Come back down with me. We need to leave SunnyHell before those biker demons find us and -

"It would be so easy," Dawn interrupted suddenly.

"What? What would?" Spike's quizzical face went unnoticed as Dawn continued to stare down the hole.

"Jumping. I could end it all, all my pain, if I just jump. I could be with mom, and- and Buffy. I could join them, wherever they are, and we can be a family again. I'm... I'm just so tired." Her voice trembled as she spoke. Spike approached her slowly, his hand hovering just inches away from her shoulder.

"Pet, believe me, I miss your mum and your sister as much as anyone. And you can take it from me, that fall you're thinkin' about, its not a pleasant one." Spike winced at the reminder of when he had been launched from atop the tower. "Let's go, Bit. This place," Spike gazed around for emphasis, "is a tower of failure. My failure. When the good doctor threw me off this sodding pile of junk, I failed Buffy, failed you. Buffy died because I failed..." He trailed off into silence.

Dawn slowly, finally, turned around to face him. She saw something in his startling blue eyes, something she had never seen in the brash vampire; pain. He stood hugging himself, lost in his memories. She waited for him to continue. Her breath caught in her throat when he turned his head and locked his eyes onto hers.

"You can't jump, Dawnie, don't you see. If you do, then I fail again. I fail in protecting you, keeping you alive. I don't wanna' fail you Dawn, not again. I'm tired of failing Summers women." His voice grew very quiet at the end, as a tear rolled down his left cheek.

"B-but everyone always leaves me. First dad left, and then mom, and then Buffy. Giles left me, even the Buffybot left. How do I know you won't be next?"

"Because you have my word that I'll never leave you." As he said the words, he stepped closer to embrace her. Dawn stared at him, shocked and relieved at his words, and then broke down in his arms, letting go of all the pent up emotions she had let build up over the summer. They stood like that, locked together, her face wet with tears, his face searching his surroundings, looking for something else to say.

"Dawn, I- Oh, bollocks!" Spike's eyes were drawn to a number of people running from a group of the biker demons that had overrun Sunnydale. One of them had bright red hair. Spike pulled away from Dawn and started to run down the stairs when her words stopped him cold.

"You-you said you wouldn't leave me. Were you just lying too?" Dawn's shrill voice cut through the night air. Spike turned to lock eyes with her again.

"No, pet, I meant every word. But if we don't leave _right now_, you and I will be attending late-night funerals for Red and the rest of the Scoobies."

Dawn squealed, "Ohmygod" and rushed down after Spike.

* * *

Xander was sprawled on the ground, wincing in pain, Anya at his side. Willow was laying atop a dumpster, still reeling from the vicious slap that Razor, the demon bikers' leader, had delivered. Tara, her face a mixture of fury at Razor and concern for Willow, stood protectively in front of her lover.

Razor, along with several members of his biker gang, stood facing the disarrayed Scoobies.

"We're not gonna fight you. We're just gonna hold you down and have some fun for a few hours. Hell, you might even live through it. Ya see, some of my boys got parts that tend to tear up pretty little girls. Heh, I bet we can even find a use for the Man-Bitch over there." Razor motioned to Xander as he spoke the final sentence.

"Hey! That's Man-_Witch_, ugly! Dammit, Warlock!"

"Xander! Not helping, " Anya grated out through clenched teeth. Xander looked away, searching for a way, any way, to stop what he knew was coming next.

Razor watched the banter with something resembling amusement on his face. "So, which one of you wants to be first?"

"I do" came a voice from behind the demons. All heads turned towards the voice to see Spike standing there, coat billowing in the wind, with Dawn hiding behind him.

"Heh, so, bloodsucker, you wanna go first? You're not really my type, but I'm sure one of my boys might like a go..." Razor trailed off, his face curling into what could be taken for a smile.

Spike, initially confused, realized his mistake and muttered "bollocks" under his breath before putting his game face on.

"Look, mate," Spike started, sarcasm dripping in his voice, "I'm not just any vampire. I'm Spike, slayer of Slayers, scourge of Europe, and you're in _my_ town. You and your boyos need to roll out and crawl back under whatever rock it is you came out from."

The hellish smile quickly left the demons face.

"Boys, waste this walking dust-pile, then we take care of the women." As he said the word "women", he pointedly looked directly at Xander, who appeared to begin to say something when Anya stomped on his foot. Then he returned his gaze to Spike, and then laid his eyes on Dawn. "Oh, and don't hurt that pretty young thing he's hiding, either. Well, not yet anyway. I wanna save her for last.."

Dawn let out a terrified "EEP" and tried to hide further behind Spike. Spike whispered, just loud enough for Dawn to hear, "Pet, when this goes down, get to the Magic Box as fast as you can. Don't stop for anything, and don't look back".

Two of the demons advanced on Spike. The vampire weighed his options, looking over to the Scoobies and hoping that they would be more useful than they were the night before at the cemetery. Realizing that he had come to think of them as allies, Spike became even angrier and bellowed when the nearest demon attacked. The demon swung his chains at Spike in a downward chop, but Spike, having many years of experience with chains, grabbed them before they could pick up any real velocity, and pulled the surprised demon into his waiting knee. When this happened, Dawn bolted back down the alley, towards the Magic Box, following Spike's orders and not looking back.

Seeing the girl flee, and hoping to make quick work of the bleach-blond vampire, the second demon charged Spike, brandishing a steel pipe. When he got close, Spike grabbed the demon still clutching its injured groin and fell backwards, pulling the formerly chain-wielding demon on top of him. The pipe blow meant for Spike's head connected instead with the demon's ally. Spike then threw the freshly dead demon off of him and into it's friend, all the while maintaining his grip on the chains. Spike quickly kipped up and wrapped the chains around the second demon's neck. Using a quick twist, he broke its neck and let it drop to the floor.

"Alright, who's next?" Spike uttered with confidence.

While the rest of his gang fled, Razor snarled in challenge, rushing Spike with claws out wide. Ducking the first swipe, Spike delivered a punishing blow to the demon's ribs. Razor countered with an elbow to the head, sending Spike to the ground. Dodging a head-stomp, Spike rolled to his left, trying to get room to stand. The demon, expecting this move, sent Spike flying with a well placed kick to the mid-section. Before he could recover, Razor was on top of Spike, pounding and slashing relentlessly.

"This is _my_ town now, vampire." Razor's victory smirk didn't last long, as an answering smirk came across Spike's now bloody and ragged face. "What have you got to smile about?"

"You see, mate," Spike said through bloody lips, "all your friends split after I took out the first two, while my friends..." Spike stopped speaking as the demon's eyes widened in surprise. Razor roared in pain and he turned to see Xander standing behind him, an axe in his hand, its head covered in the demon's own ichor.

"Are right behind you," Xander finished for Spike, as he swung the axe again. The demon, clutching the axe now embedded in his chest, fell to his knees. He looked up to see a very angry Wiccan and an equally pissed off ex-demon standing over him, brandishing the weapons Razor's gang had dropped as they fled.

While Tara and Anya finished off Razor, Xander walked over to Spike and offered his hand.

"So, we're friends now, hunh?"

"Well, 'sodding idiots whose hides I've been saving for months now' didn't have the same ring to it." Surprisingly, Spike took the offered hand and answered Xander's grin with one of his own. However, his mirth was short lived as one word came to his mind.

"Dawn."

Spike took off down the alley, leaving Xander to round up the girls and follow behind him.

* * *

"Dawn," Spike yelled out as he stepped through the ruined entrance to the Magic Box. "Dawn, are you here?" His voice rose as he frantically searched the building. He paused and took in the smells of the place. Sifting through the aromas of the various herbs the shop carried, he caught two very familiar scents; Dawn, and fear. He picked up a nearby shard of wood, praying to whoever was listening he wouldn't need it. "Pet, speak to me".

"Spike?" Dawn's voice was meek and laced with fright. She stepped out of the shadows of a bookrack, tears rolling down her face. Spike dropped the makeshift stake as Dawn ran into his arms, sobbing.

"There were so many, I thought... I thought that you..." Dawn trailed off, still crying, as Spike comforted her.

"Shhh, its okay pet. The Big Bad saved the day, _and_ your friends. They should be catching up any minute now". He stroked her hair softly as she continued to cry in his arms.

A crash came from Buffy's old training area in the back of the Magic Box, causing Spike to tense up, but he relaxed at the familiar sound that accompanied it.

"Xan-_der_!" Anya's voice carried through the shop.

"Don't worry, An. I built it once, I can do it again."

"D-Dawn?" Tara called out softly. She was supporting Willow as she walked, who was very obviously still dazed from her physical encounter with Razor's fist. "Dawnie, are you here?"

"In here," Spike called out. The group rushed into the main area of the shop. Everyone looked around, taking in the damage. Anya, especially, carried a look of horror, but whether that it was due to the potential money involved in fixing up the Magic Box or the general carnage of the situation, Spike couldn't tell.

"Dawn, honey, are you okay?" Willow asked as she stepped tentatively towards the teen, hesitant to leave Tara's supporting frame.

"I.. I just wanna go home," Dawn managed through choked sobs.

Xander stepped forward and said, "I'll get the car."

"Well, at least _this_ place didn't take too much damage," Xander said as he surveyed the Summers house. "Gonna need a lot of glass-work though."

"I'm sure you can fix it Xander," Willow said. The redhead looked up as Spike came down the stairs. Everyone stood up as he got to the landing.

"How is she?" Tara asked.

"She'll be alright. Got a few scrapes here and there, but nothin' to worry about. She's just scared is all."

"Thank you Spike."

"No need, Red. All in a day's work."

"Well, yeah, inSunnydale, but that's not what I meant." At Spikes inquisitive look, Willow continued. "You saved us. You hate us and you risked your life, well, unlife, to help us out. You didn't have to do that.." Spike's face turned serious after she had grown quiet.

"Yea, I did. If I hadn't saved you, if I had let those wankers have their fun, it would've broken her heart." At that, Spike nodded towards Dawn's room before continuing. "And _she'd_ never have forgiven me." Here, Spike nodded towards the roof, as if he could see the heavens on the other side. "Buffy'd never forgive me."

After a moment of silence, Spike spoke again. "I gave the Bit my word that I'd stick around, no matter what, so I guess we're gonna have to work some things out. You know, who stays where and what all. My crypt, posh though it is, isn't exactly the safest or most comfy place for those who actually need to breathe."

Willow looked around at everyone before she spoke. "We'll figure it out."

**End Prologue**


	2. Glamour: Teaser

**A/N:** _Again, many thanks two my two beta's, Anaiya Illyria and SophieKitten. Glamour takes place one week after the prologue._

**Update - 30 June, 2013: **_Just passing through with my update stick. Not much changed in this chapter. Just fixed a few errors and made it flow a tiny bit better. Enjoy!_

* * *

Tara stood by the Summers' stove, cooking up enough pancakes to feed a small army. Places were set on the table for four people. Willow sat at the table, head buried in her laptop. The sun had just risen, the red rays came in through the windows highlighting Tara's hair against her white blouse.

"Funny shapes?" Dawn inquired as she came bounding down the steps.

"Funny shapes," Tara confirmed, a smile on her face.

"Morning, Dawnie," Willow said cheerfully as she looked up from her laptop. "Xander will be here in a few minutes for breakfast and then to take you to school."

"Oh. Cool," Dawn muttered as she grabbed the orange juice out of the refrigerator. Willow noted the less than enthusiastic tone that Dawn was using.

"Come on, Dawn, school is fun! There's chemistry and computer science and-"

"Sweetie, not everyone shares your passion for school," Tara interrupted Willow teasingly. She caught Willow's eyes and stared lovingly into them, smiling.

"What's this about sharing Willow's passion?" Xander breezed into the kitchen, a wicked grin on his face. "You know that anytime you foxy ladies wanna swing my way..." He left the sentence open, looking back and forth between Willow and Tara, waggling his eyebrows.

"Anya will kill us all," Willow finished for Xander with a roll of her eyes. Xander looked momentarily dejected.

"Ah, yes. The dangers of dating a monogamous demon. Take it from me, Dawnster, avoid the demon love at all cost." Xander shot Dawn a wink.

While Willow smirked and Tara turned back to cooking, Dawn put on her best "innocent" face and said, "But, Anya is always saying how much you enjoy her 'demon love'."

Tara giggled quietly and Willow exclaimed, "Dawn!" wearing a shocked expression. Xander turned red and sputtered, "Yeah, well Anya talks too m- Oh, thank God, food's ready!" Xander promptly grabbed a pancake off of the platter and stuffed his face with it to avoid further embarrassment.

"Mmmmm, thash goof, Tawa," Xander garbled out, somehow managing to avoid spraying food everywhere.

"Thanks, I-I think," Tara responded. She set the rest of the pancakes on the table and moved back to the counter to get the butter and syrup. Dawn filled everyone's glass with orange juice and then joined everyone in eating.

"So, Xander, where is Anya, anyway? She's been attached to your hip even more than usual lately." Willow spoke between bites, careful not to show her full mouth. Before giving Xander a chance to respond, Willow let out a food-derived groan of pleasure and placed her hand on Tara's arm, conveying her thanks for breakfast with her eyes.

"She's meeting with some contractors to see how much money it's gonna take to repair the Magic Box." The tone of Xander's voice told everyone what he thought about the prospect.

"Wait, why isn't she using the company you work for?" Dawn voiced the confusion of everyone else at the table.

"Oh, she didn't like my quote. She said that it wasn't cheap enough and that I should give her a discount because she," Xander paused and looked over at Dawn before he continued, "because of her 'demon love'. So, she's shopping for cheaper prices." Willow turned to her oldest friend.

"But shouldn't everything be covered by insurance? I just can't see Giles not buying every insurance available."

"What are we gonna file it under? I'm sure 'demon invasion' isn't covered by State Farm," Xander replied, a sarcastic smile on his face. "Then again, this _is_ Sunnydale." He took another bite of pancakes before continuing. "And even if everything ends up being covered, Anya wants to spend as little money as possible. It's kind of her ethos."

"So we've noticed," Willow said dryly, drawing a semi-wounded look from Xander.

"Vandalism," Tara spoke up. When everyone turned toward her, she continued. "I think I remember seeing vandalism being c-covered in the insurance manual," she finished shyly.

The phone rang, and Willow rose to answer it. She ignored the conversation between Xander and Tara about why she would read the entire insurance manual and said, "Summers' residence." Willow was quiet for a minute. "Miss Summers? Sure hold on," Willow tilted the phone away and covered it with her hand before saying, "Dawnie, you've got a phone call." Before Dawn could get up, Willow's face went pale at what came through the receiver. "Oh, _that_ Miss Summers. She, uh, isn't here right now. She's out, erm, taking Dawn to school." Willow's voice trembled a bit, having always been a terrible liar. Everyone had quit talking and was watching the exchange intently. All the blood drained from Willow's face.

"Um, I, uh, don't think that'll be a good time. Erm, Buffy, she, uh, has this, um, thing-," Willow went quiet and everyone stood up, their chairs scrapping the floor noisily. Dawn looked pained at the mention of her sister's name, but it quickly passed. "Oh, okay. Thank you. I'll pass it along to her." Willow hung up the phone and turned her ashen face to the Scoobies.

"What is it, Will?" Xander asked for everyone.

"That was Child Protection Services. They'll be checking in to see if Buffy is still fit to be Dawn's guardian." Her words shook everyone. Tara was the first to recover her wits.

"How much time do we ha-have?" She walked up to comfort her clearly shaken girlfriend.

"They'll be here tomorrow."

**End Teaser**


	3. Glamour: Act I

**A/N – 30 June, 2013: **_Holy smokes, I can't believe I didn't have any author's notes to kick-start the chapter! This was from the time that I had briefly lost contact with my former betas, AnaiyaIllyria and Sophiekitten. Both were fantastic but we had very difficult schedules to work around. Okay, so, I've added the credits to this chapter, as I didn't start using them until _**Family**_. Now, the stories have a more unified look to them. I also fixed a few errors that I encountered along the way. Enjoy!_

* * *

_"Redemption"_

**Episode 1**

**"Glamour"**

_by Leon Stryfe_

**Starring:**

James Marsters as "Spike"

Michelle Trachtenberg as "Dawn Summers"

Nicholas Brendan as "Alexander 'Xander' Harris"

Alyson Hannigan as "Willow Rosenberg"

Amber Benson as "Tara Maclay"

Emma Caulfield as "Anya Jenkins"

**Guest Starring:**

Emily Deschanel as "Ms. Cartwright"

"Tomorrow," Xander cried in dismay. "That's, that's not possible. The Buffybot is-"

"I know, Xander." Willow cut him off with a wave. "We'll have to come up with something else." Willow's face was slowly regaining some of it's colour.

"But, but there is nothing else," Dawn whined as tears began to well up in her eyes. "They're gonna take me away." Tara quickly moved to comfort Dawn.

"No, sweety, we w-won't let that happen. We'll come up with something." She stood, hugging Dawn close, however her face betrayed her doubts to Xander and Willow. Xander stood still, his jaw clenching at the thought that they would lose the last Summers girl to politics. Willow sat down and opened her laptop back up.

"I'll find some legal loophole or something, Dawnie, don't you worry. You're not going anywhere. E-Except school."

"What?" Dawn turned away from Tara to stare at Willow. "How can I go to school knowing that I may be taken away from the only family I have left?" Dawn's red rimmed eyes bored into Willow's.

"Dawn, the social worker's going to check every facet of your life here, and that includes your school attendance. The better everything looks, the less trouble we'll have with making our solution work." Willow's logic seemed to calm the teen a bit, and started Xander into action.

"Come on, Dawn. Get your bags, I'll start the car".

* * *

As the sun sat high above Sunnydale, Willow closed her laptop in frustration. Tara was going through various magical texts around her while Xander rifled through books on robotics. Anya walked through the Summers' front door with four lattes. Everyone looked up and acknowledged Anya and thanked her for the drinks.

"So. Any progress?" Anya looked over the group after she had taken her customary seat beside Xander. The frustrated looks on everyone's faces was answer enough. "Guess not," she sighed, before taking a noisy sip of her drink.

"Sure, we've made lots of progress, if we count zero a bunch of times," Xander said sarcastically.

Anya, not understanding, replied, "But that's still zero. If you give me no money, then no money is gained. It defeats the purpose of a capitalist society."

Xander patted Anya on the arm. "Yes, honey, of course. How stupid of me to try and slip that by you." His sarcasm was lost on Anya, but the two Wiccans in the room smiled briefly. The back door opened, and everyone turned to see Spike, covering himself with a grey blanket, smoldering from the sunlight. After he had checked himself over to make certain that he wasn't on fire, he looked up and noticed everyone staring at him.

"What?"

"Spike, what're you doing here?" Willow asked, a hint of concern in her voice.

"Well, I'm outta blood, and I've got some stored over here for emergencies, and I thought to ma'self that I'd fancy a drink. Why, is there some reason I shouldn't be here?" Spike picked up on Willow's tone and noticed the books strewn about the table.

"No, no reason," Willow said, hoping that Spike would drop the matter.

"Right then. So, what new beastie are we lookin' into? I know a thing or two, ya know. I bet I know more than any ol' book about," Spike walked over and picked up one of the robotic texts, "Advanced Circuitry." He put the book back down softy. "Okay, so, the house's been taken over by an mechano-demon, has it?" Spike's voice was full of mirth, which quickly left when he saw the faces of everyone present.

"What? What is it?"

"Spike, I... social services is coming to 'check in' on Dawn tomorrow, and to see if Buffy is a fit guardian," Xander finaly said. A mixture of emotions ran through Spike, ranging from anger to sorrow, before he spoke again.

"What've we got so far?"

"Wait, that's it? No 'I'll rip off their heads and drink from their brain-stems' reaction?" Xander was honestly taken aback by Spike's non-violent approach.

"Done thought of that. After I killed that one, there'd be another, and another, until SWAT showed up in full force to kill every one of _you_ lot before dragging Dawn out from under your entrails. Doesn't seem to solve much, is all."

A breathy "Wow," was all Willow could manage, and everyone else sat in stunned silence. Spike's next words served to bring them out of their stupor.

"So. What. Have. We. Got." Spike punctuated every word, making sure that he got a response this time.

"Ugh, no legal loopholes I could find. We've tried to call Mr. Summers, but we can't seem to locate him." Willow was the first to answer.

"Willow's good with the robotics, but she's no Warren. She can't fix the Buffybot by tomorrow," Xander reported, nodding in Willow's direction.

"I h-haven't found anything magical, either." Tara voiced her failures along with the rest of the group. Spike turned to Anya, who shrugged and pointed at the coffee carrier in the middle of the table. Spike muttered, "'course" under his breath and then sat down beside Tara.

"Show me what you've been looking through."

"When did you get big on the magic?" Willow felt immediately defensive of Tara.

"We'll, les'see here. I've been a demon for over a hundred years, so I've definitely had the time. Plus I've run in the right circles and all that." Spike sarcastically listed off his points on his fingers as he spoke. Then he tried a different tactic.

"Look, I just figured a fresh set of eyes would help, and since the electronic bugaboo isn't my department, I thought that I'd be more help on the magic end."

"Oh," Willow said, suitably admonished.

Tara informed Spike of everything that she had covered while the rest of the gang got up and moved around.

"You're focusing on bringing Buffy back to life?" Spike eventually asked.

"Well, it does eliminate our Dawn crisis, as well as have the added bonus of, ya' know, bringing Buffy back to life," Xander answered. Spike turned a wary eye on the young man.

"Look, mate, I miss her too, but you can't go around messing with those kind of magics. Bad things happen; there's always consequences," Spike locked eyes with Dawn, remembering the time he had helped her bring Joyce 'back to life'. "No, there's gotta be another way." Everyone was quiet before Spike broke the silence some time later. "A glamour."

"Spike, I don't think a women's magazine about facials and sex tips is the answer." Spike quirked an eyebrow at Xander's response while Tara's face lit up with revelation and Willow's face clouded over. Dawn took on a questioning look.

"Xander, how do you know about a women's magazine in the first place?" Before he could respond to Dawn's question, Anya spoke for him.

"He likes reading the sex tips. He says it makes him a better lov-" Anya was interrupted as Xander clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Okay, enough about me. Spike, you had an idea," Xander said as casually as he could, attempting to direct the focus anywhere but himself. Spike kept his eyebrow quirked for a split second and added a smirk when he caught Anya glaring daggers into Xander's face as he pretended not to notice.

"As I was saying before nancy boy over there interrupted me," Spike started, pointedly ignoring the muttered protest of "HEY!" coming from Xander. "...I was saying that a glamour should do the trick."

"A glamour," Tara murmured. " I don't know why I d-didn't think of it before."

"We were so caught up in bringing Buffy back, we missed the most logical solution," Willow said, shaking her head in disbelief at her own failure.

"Right, then, good thing I was here to help. And you lot thought I'd be useless." Spike couldn't quite keep the smugness out of his voice. Willow's face grew even cloudier after being upstaged by Spike in her own field, and she wondered if Tara felt the same way. However, when Willow looked over to her girlfriend, Tara was busy searching the magic books again, trying to find the right spell. Realizing that Tara had the right idea, Willow got up and spread the magical texts around the table.

"Focus on anything that looks like it might work; shape-shifting, altering perceptions, and disguises," Willow said as she prepped the rest of the gang.

After awhile, Tara spoke up.

"I th-think I've found something." She passed what she was reading over to Willow and pointed out the passage. Willow set the book on top of the one in front of her and started to read. When she finished, she looked up at Tara.

"Baby, you're a genius! This is perfect." Willow praised her lover.

Tara blushed a bit before turning to Spike.

"It was technically Spike's idea." Spike smirked wide for all to see.

"Oh, god, don't fuel his ego," Xander said, making Spike smirk all the wider.

"Okay guys, let's head to the magic shop. I'll compile a list of what we need on the way."


	4. Glamour: Act II

**A/N – 01 July, 2013:** _I missed another introductory Author's Notes! Really, I'm a bit ashamed of myself. Oh, well, I've got one now. I updated this chapter to fix some grammatical errors and to make things flow a bit smoother. I was still working without beta imput, so I had several flaws that another pair of eyes would have picked up. Enjoy!_

* * *

The Scoobies arrived at the Magic Box just as the sun was setting, each with a list of items they needed to find. The group pilled out of Xander's car and walked inside. While the exterior didn't look too bad the inside was still badly damaged. Everyone fanned out to search the wrecked shop. Tara looked upstairs while Willow and Xander went to the ingredient section. Anya went to search the basement, while Dawn sat down and Spike kept her in his peripheral vision as he took the area nearest the table.

"You really think this will work?" Dawn asked, only loud enough for Spike to hear her.

"Course I do, pet. It's my idea, after all." Spike had a hint of pride in his voice. He looked Dawn's way and held her gaze long enough to reassure her before he kept on searching.

Over the next hour, everyone brought their items to the table for Dawn to check off of the master list. When everyone had piled the table high with ingredients, Dawn began the list aloud. She finally came to an item that didn't seem to be on the table.

"Where is the 'key-image focus'? What's a key-image focus?" Dawn looked from Willow to Tara, both of whom shrugged their shoulders.

"It's a personal item that belonged to the person the image is based on, in this case Buffy." It was Anya that spoke, to the surprise of everyone. When the Scoobies continued to gawk at her with faces full of confusion and surprise, she spoke again. "What? I was a vengeance demon for a thousand years. I _do_ know about magic," she stated in a huff, before quietly adding, "Why does everyone forget that?"

"An, everyone tries to forget that you were a vengeance demon because you were a _vengeance demon_. Vengeance isn't exactly kittens and rainbows, and demons are what we fight against on at least a weekly basis." Xander hugged his fiancée close. "But you're right. You've spent a lot more time with magic than both Tara and Willow combined. Maybe they can ask you for help every now and again." Xander spoke firmly, looking directly at both Wiccans. They nodded, and Willow wore what Xander thought was a forced smile, but he was certain Anya wouldn't pick up on it.

"I don't think Buffy h-had anything personal here." Tara pointed out.

"No, probably not," Xander said, shaking his head.

"Does that mean we need to go back home?" Dawn asked the group.

"Sounds like, luv. Grab some bags from behind the counter and let's take this stuff to the car." Spike had already sorted the goods into more manageable portions when Dawn brought the bags back to the table.

"Heavy stuff in the bottom, breakables by their lonesome."

"Spike, I know how to stack stuff in a grocery bag," Dawn groused.

"Right. Course you do," Spike said apologetically. Xander smiled at Spike being knocked down a peg or two, and snickered a bit louder than he intended, as Spike turned his glare on Xander. Xander merely raised his hands in surrender, but didn't stop smiling. Willow stepped forward and picked up a set of glass jars.

"Everyone grab a bag; we're heading home."

* * *

Everyone sat in the Summers living room, waiting for Willow and Tara to come down. They had insisted that the spell needed to cast in private, with as few distractions as possible. They had offered to let Anya help but Xander wisely talked her into a game of Monopoly between Dawn, Spike, and himself.

"$350, please," Anya gloated as Xander landed on one of her many properties.

"Why is it I'm giving you all of my money, but no one else is?" Xander's anger was mild but he was regretting his decision to let the witches exclude his wife-to-be.

"Cause no one else is dating her," Spike interjected. "Better get used to being broke." The bleach-blonde's words caused Anya to smile and Dawn to giggle. Xander did not share their mirth.

"So, how do I look?" Willow's voice came from atop the stairs. Everyone rushed to the stairs but Xander made sure his knee 'accidentally' hit the board on his way over. As distracted as she was, Anya managed to catch Xander in the act, throwing him a withering glare.

When everyone reached the foot of the stairs, they found themselves staring up at Buffy's form. The mixture of emotions Willow read across everyone's faces told her that the spell had worked perfectly. Xander's jaw was low enough to touch the ground while Anya, standing beside him, was still glaring at him for ruining the game of Monopoly. Dawn looked on the verge of tears, whether from happiness or sorrow, Willow couldn't tell. When Willow's eyes met Spike's, she saw a brief flash of pain before he tore his gaze away.

"You look the part, but you still sound like Red," Spike pointed out. He seemed to be trying to look anywhere but at Willow's new guise.

"Well, the s-social worker hasn't met Buffy, so they won't know e-exactly what she sounded like," Tara said from behind Willow.

"Okay, it works. Undo it and cast it again in the morning, whenever the CPS guy shows up." Xander appeared to be speaking for the rest of the gang, as Dawn nodded emphatically and Spike gave a slight nod.

"Um, sorry, guys, but I can't." Before anyone could interrupt, which, judging by the Scoobies' faces, three of them were about to do, Willow pressed on. "The spell lasts 24 hours. I'll look like Buffy until tomorrow night." Willow again saw the emotions of everyone in the group, and was suddenly glad she had passed by the hallway mirror with her eyes closed.

"Right, then, I'm gonna go out and patrol. Keep all the hell beasties in line." Spike grabbed his coat and was out the door before anyone could stop him.

"I'm going to have Spike take me home." Anya was speaking to Xander, but was loud enough for everyone to hear her. Before Xander could protest, she put a hand on Xander's arm. "The contractors will be starting repairs in the morning, and I'm not letting them be unsupervised in the shop so they can steal whatever they want."

Xander was going to comment on how unlikely it was that any normal contractor would want to steal anything from a magic shop, but thought better of it. This was Sunnydale, after all, and stranger things had happened. That, and he thought he saw a hint of something else in Anya's eyes, but understanding just wasn't in Anya's nature. Instead, he kissed her his thanks and walked her to the door.

"I'm, uh, going to do my homework. You know, to keep the Social Worker happy," Dawn said before rushing up the stairs and passing by Willow and Tara before entering her room. Willow couldn't help but hear the sound of the lock turning in Dawn's door. Apparently, neither could Tara.

"Don't worry, sweetie, it just means that the spell is working really well." Tara's arms came around and encircled Willow's waist, hugging her tightly from behind. Xander quickly turned away. Even though he knew it was Willow, the sight of Tara cuddling with Buffy disturbed the young man in ways he couldn't describe.

"Okay, gang, I hear food calling my name," Xander called from the doorway, after making sure Anya had met up with Spike. "Let's order some pizza." Xander walked into the kitchen and picked up the phone. As Willow and Tara came down the stairs, they overheard Xander ordering enough pizza for a small block party, but neither said anything. Tara guided a mournful Willow to the big couch and sat her down.

"I'm going to make you some herbal tea," Tara said sternly, knowing Willow would likely protest. Then she hugged her companion and walked into the kitchen, passing by Xander as he was leaving. Tara caught his gaze and sent him a silent message of "help her" with her eyes that she hoped he would understand. Xander nodded in understanding, then walked over to the couch and sat down beside Willow. Xander was quiet a moment, trying to think of exactly what to say to lighten the mood.

"So, Willster, since you're taking Buffy's looks out for a test drive, did you happen to check to see what she ran under the hood?" Xander's question hung in the air before a shocked Willow understood his meaning. Willow jerked her head up and towards him, red flushing her, and to Xander's perception, Buffy's, cheeks.

"Xander! How can you even ask me that? Just because I swing for the home team doesn't mean that I'd sneak a peek at my best friend!" As angry as she was, Xander thought that Willow was being just a bit too defensive.

"Tara wouldn't let you, would she," Xander stated more than asked, a big grin on his face. Her cheeks got even redder before Willow hung her head and laughed. Softley at first, but she quickly delved into a full on case of the giggles. Xander smiled even wider before bursting out in accompanying laughter. They laughed uncontrollably, letting all the tension of the past weeks slip out. Tara walked in, a big, yet confused, smile on her face. She looked questioningly at Xander, which made he and Willow laugh all the harder. He did manage to see Tara send a thankful nod his way, however. Tara just stood there, dumbfounded, and couldn't help but start laughing herself. With tears streaming from Willow's and Xander's eyes from too much laughter, and with Tara having her back to the stairs, no one noticed Dawn standing on the stairs. Dawn was momentarily taken back to happier times, seeing her sister simply laughing with her friends, without the weight of the world on her shoulders, before the reality of the situation hit home again, and she quietly walked back to her room.

Dawn shut her door and tuned out the giggles coming from the living room. She was caught in a storm of emotions. On the one hand, she was ecstatic that the spell had worked. It meant that she would be able to keep living in her own home with what was left of her family. On the other hand, seeing her sister again, even if it wasn't really Buffy, had re-opened the wounds that begun healing over the summer. But it was good to see everyone happy again. She couldn't stop thinking about how secretive everyone had been the last few weeks... Well, everyone but Spike. Spike had been her one constant lately, and she really wished that he hadn't run off so suddenly.

"Whatever," she muttered to herself.

"Whatever what?" Xander's voice startled her out of her thoughts. She hadn't heard the door open, and remembered that she hadn't locked it this time around. Xander's face was still flushed from his laughing bout, but he had dried his eyes before coming up. He was still wearing a smile as wide as his face, though, and Dawn couldn't help but smile herself.

"Nothing, Xander. I'm about to go to bed, tell everyone goodnight for me?" She said the last bit as a question, raising her eyes hopefully. Xander just nodded a smiled.

"Night, Dawnie. We'll save you some pizza in case you get hungry," he said, as he backed out of her room.

"Thanks. Goodnight," she responded, before Xander closed her door. Xander walked downstairs to rejoin the women in the living room.

"All right, ladies, the Dawn Monster is going to sleep. I'm gonna sit on the porch and wait for the pizza man. Care to join me?" Xander raised his eyebrows after he had their attention. Willow rolled her eyes but nodded, holding Tara's hand as they followed Xander out the door.

After awhile the pizza deliveryman arrived with seven pizzas and a bag full of condiments. Xander paid the man and all of them carried the pizza's inside. After eating as much as he could, Xander spoke up.

"Okay, I ordered waaayyy too much pizza." The nods of the Wiccans signaled their agreement. "It's time to hibernate. I'm gonna snooze on the couch. Ladies, I bid you good night." Xander flourished a bow, making the girls giggle, before he walked to the couch, and collapsed onto it, groaning all the while.

"I think he's got the right idea. It's definitely bed time," Tara said, standing up while pulling Willow up with her. "We've got a big day ahead; we should be well rested."

As they walked up the stairs, hand in hand, neither noticed the strange apparition shooting out of the ceiling above them. It moved around in confused circles. When they got to the top of the stairs, Willow and Tara turned toward their room. The apparition caught sight of what was, to its view, Buffy Summers walking past. It quickly spiraled its way towards the departing form, and dove into an unsuspecting Willow. She stumbled forward, and would have fallen, had Tara not caught her.

"Willow, are you alright?" Tara asked, concern in her eyes.

"I'm fine, baby, I guess I just tripped or something. Let's go to bed." Willow's voice was as full of confusion as Tara's was, but she looked into Tara's eyes to reassure her. They walked into their bedroom and shut the door.

* * *

Spike walked in the back door, shutting and locking it behind him. He looked over to the microwave to read the clock. 4:12 A.M. He shook his head. He hadn't meant to stay out that late, but he had wanted to stay out late enough to not have to see Willow looking like she did. Looking like Buffy. He walked to the refrigerator and got out some blood before putting it into the microwave. He caught it before the beep so as not to take a chance of waking anyone, and took a sip of his freshly warmed blood.

He almost dropped his mug as a loud sound came out of the living room. He put down his mug quietly and stalked into the living room, ready for anything. He relaxed when he saw that the unearthly sound was coming out of Xander's sleeping form.

"How does she do it?" Spike muttered to himself, pondering how Anya could ever get a good night's sleep. Thinking of Anya made him remember walking her home earlier in the night, but it had really been simply an uneventful trip. When Spike turned around to go back to his warm mug of blood, he started in surprise again, this time because he saw Buffy standing at the bottom of the stairwell.

"Jesus, Red, don't do that to me. Not lookin' like that." Spike was equal parts livid and disappointed, forgetting for the tiniest fraction of a second the spell that Willow had cast earlier in the day.

"Sp...ike?" The word, said with confusion, caused Spike to pause. It sounded more like the real Buffy than it did Willow.

"Hey, not bad, workin' on the voice thing. But I thought your lady love said that it wouldn't matter." Spike continued to stare into her eyes, waiting for a response.

"Spike... where am I?" This time, Spike was certain that it wasn't Willow he was talking to. He sprang into action, his heart soaring.

"Luv', don't worry, you're safe. Jus' follow me into the livin' room and have a seat." He led Buffy to a chair. "Give me a minute to get everyone else, pet." Spike walked over and placed one hand over Xander's mouth before shaking him violently. Xander let out a muffled "Huuuummpppphhhh" before locking eyes with Spike. When Spike raised an eyebrow at him, Xander nodded, realizing that Spike wanted him to be quiet. Before he could voice his concerns, Spike spoke.

"Don't ask me how, but believe me when I tell you that _that_," he said as he pointed to Buffy's form, "is not Willow." Xander was confused, still being in a drowsy state. He stared at Spike for a moment before following his finger. After careful inspection, Xander noted the confused and lost look on Buffy's face, and realized exactly what Spike meant.

"How?" Xander whispered, his voice full of amazement.

"Done said I didn't know. Go upstairs; grab niblet and the lovebirds. I don't know what you guys 'ave done while I was away, but we need answers." Xander was about to protest that they hadn't done anything, but thought better of it after looking at Spike, and bounded up the stairs. Spike walked over and sat beside Buffy.

"It'll be alright, pet. I don't know how you're back, but you're safe now."

Xander got to the master bedroom and didn't even bother to knock. He went in and flicked on the lights. Tara groggily opened her eyes.

"Xander? What is it?"

"A miracle's happened. Where's Willow?" Tara looked to her left and realized that Willow wasn't there. She quickly got up and looked about the room, fear replacing confusion.

"I.. I d-don't know," she said, panic starting to rise in her voice. She and Xander began a search of the entire second floor. Xander woke Dawn in the process.

"Xander? What-"

"No time. Willow's missing and your sister's downstairs." Dawn's eyes widened as Xander's words sank in. She quickly got out of bed and raced to the living room, leaving Xander to continue searching for Willow with Tara. When she walked down, she saw a confused Buffy sitting next to Spike.

"Buffy? Is that really you?" Dawn was hesitant to rush over to her sister, still not certain that it really was Buffy after the events earlier in the day.

"Dawn..ie?" Buffy uttered, recognition slowly coming into her eyes. This was all the conformation Dawn needed as she rushed to her sister's side.

"I don't know how this is possible, but it doesn't matter. You're here with me. You're here." Dawn let the tears fall down her face as she embraced her sister.

Xander and Tara, who were just as upset as Dawn was happy, came down the stairs. Spike looked up as they came down, stood and walked towards the duo.

"Spike, we've got a problem. We can't find Willow anywhere," Xander said after Spike had joined them. Before he could say anything, Tara looked past them and saw Buffy and Dawn locked in an embrace.

"Guys, that's not funny," Tara said, anger replacing the sadness and panic she had been consumed with.

"What's not funny?" Xander asked, not comprehending Tara's new anger.

"Willow's right there, hugging Dawn. Those are Willow's pajamas."


	5. Glamour: Act III

**A/N**- _As always, a thousand thanks to my two betas, Anaiya Illyria and SophieKitten._

**Update – 01 July, 2013:** _How much easier life is with a beta's help! There wasn't much to fix here, just a few items that needed streamlining. Enjoy!_

* * *

The Scoobies sat or stood around Buffy, arranged as furniture would permit. After continued admonishment from Dawn, everyone had eventually settled down. Spike was busy trying to wrap his head around what he saw and knew. Buffy, the real Buffy, was sitting right before him. He wasn't sure how it was possible, but he didn't really care. He also knew that Tara was convinced that it was Willow that sat before the assembled Scoobies, and a quick jewelry and clothes check moments ago seemed to prove her claim. In the end, he was just happy to be talking to Buffy again.

For her part, Buffy was just as confused as everyone else, if not more so. When she spoke, she spoke with all of Buffy's inflections and mannerisms in a tone that sounded very much like Buffy, but the fact that it was coming out of Willow's vocal chords was apparent.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Spike asked, making his voice as soothing as possible. There was a long silence before his question was answered.

"Warmth. I was warm, wherever I was. And happy. I knew that everyone I loved, everything I cared about was going to be okay. I was loved, and I was done, finished with... with everything. And then... then I remember something pulling me out of the warmth. I remember seeing my body in it's coffin, but it wasn't me, not anymore. Then, I," she paused, searching for the right word before continuing. "Drifted, I guess. I didn't know how to get back to the warm place, and I didn't know what to do here. Then, something called to me, told me that I could come back. I followed the call, and then I remember seeing me, my body, surrounded by a bright white light, blocking everything else out. The call came from my body, so I dove into it. Then, darkness, until I woke up with some one, a woman, snuggled tight against me, arm over me protectively." She paused for a minute, and then blushed, realizing now that it must have been Tara that was sleeping with her. A quick glance over to Tara confirmed it, because her face looked just as red as Buffy's cheeks felt. She shook her head, clearing her thoughts before continuing. "Then I got up, came downstairs, and ran into Spike. He sat me down, and here we are."

The group was silent as they digested what Buffy's words meant. She had been in a blissful paradise before something had pulled her out. Spike and Dawn had no idea what that something could have been, but Xander and Tara did.

Tara, for her part, felt horrible for Buffy, but she had been against the Osiris resurrection spell all along. This reinforced her opinion that some magic was not meant for mortal hands. Xander, on the other hand, had been behind the spell from the beginning. He was sick to his stomach, knowing that he had helped yank his friend out of heaven, and may have also lost his best friend in the process. The his feelings reached his face and were not missed by Spike's observant gaze.

"Was mom there?" Dawn asked into the silence. Tears were running down her face, realizing what her sister had lost, but seeking comfort wherever she could.

"I think so; nothing had form, so it's hard to tell, and the memory is starting to fade, but," Buffy looked up and saw how her words were affecting Dawn. She didn't remember for certain, but she thought that potentially lying to Dawn was better than the alternative. "Yeah, Dawnie, mom was there". Dawn cried even harder, but in relief and joy, knowing with certainty that her mother was in a better place. Buffy held Dawn closer, and gave her some time to calm down before asking the main thing on her mind.

"So, what do we do now? A-about Willow, I mean? I'm in her body, right? I... I think I can feel her in my head. Its all kinda hazey."

"It's got to have something to do with the Glamour spell Red cast." Spike, reading the unspoken question in Buffy's eyes, began to fill Buffy in on the happenings of Sunnydale while she had been gone. He told her about Dawn and Child Protective Services, how the Buffybot was destroyed, and the eventual decision to cast a spell to make Willow look like Buffy. For her part, Buffy appeared to take all of the information in stride.

While Spike was bringing Buffy up to speed, Tara stood up and took Xander aside.

"I need you to call Anya. I'll need her help for any spells I might need to cast." Xander nodded his understanding and walked to the kitchen. He dialed their home number and waited for Anya to pick up the phone.

"What?" Anya voice was loud and obnoxious, but less so than Xander was expecting. He knew from experience how much she hated to be woken up without getting enough 'beauty rest'.

"An, I need you to come over to Buffy's house. We've got problems." Silence greeted Xander for a beat. He wasn't sure if she was awake enough yet to fully understand what he had said or if she was just angry. After a few heartbeats, she spoke.

"What's wrong?"

"Something went wrong with our spell. We brought Buffy back, but we lost Willow." Xander informed Anya.

"What do you mean, you brought Buffy back? And how did you lose Willow? You don't just lose a whole person, Xander."

"Buffy's in Willow's body. She says that she can feel Will in her head. Willows head." Xander corrected himself and pressed on before Anya could ask any more questions. "Tara needs you as back up, and I... I need you here, Anya." Xander let some of his emotions filter into his last sentence. The shock of seeing Buffy again was something special, but knowing what he did about where she had been, on top of the fact that Buffy was inhabiting Willow's body, with no outward sign of his best friend anywhere, had Xander at his emotional breaking point. Anya seemed to sense this and didn't wait long to give her answer.

"I'll be right there." Xander hung up the phone, and turned around to face Spike, eyeing him suspiciously. When he didn't offer up any explanation and kept searching Xander's face, Xander spoke up.

"Spike, man, are you alright? I know seeing Buffy again is weird; it is for all of us, but I don't need you wigging out on me. Besides, weren't you filling Buffy in on everything?"

"Nibblet insisted she take over an' do the talking." Spike was quiet for a moment, struggling with all the thoughts in his head, before he spoke again. "Did you do something? Something to bring her back?" Shock took over all of Xander's facial features.

"What? Spike, man, I don't know what you're talking abou-" Spike interrupted Xander before he could finish his protests.

"Back there, when Buffy was talking about where she was, where she had been, you looked... guilty. I can understand horror, sadness, pain, but guilt? _What did you do_?" As he spoke the last few words, they were both hard and emotional, mixing his anger and pain. Xander knew that he was guilty, and knew that he wasn't the only one. However, he wasn't about to admit that fact just yet, not in this situation. He mustered as much courage as he could, and hoped that Spike would be convinced by his lie.

"Spike, I don't know what you're talking about. We've got a big enough problem in that room," Xander pointed to the living room as he spoke, "without you going Lone Gunman on me." Xander saw that while his short "speech" seemed to get through to the bleached Blond vampire, his reference did not, indicated by Spike's brow scrunching up. "You know, The Lone Gunman, the conspiracy theorists from the X-Files. They help Mulder a lot, even got their own show, before it was unduly canceled. Fox wouldn't know good television if it bit them in the ass."

"Alright, take the nerd-hat off, mate. I believe you. Let's get back to the Twilight Zone in there, see if we can help." Spike turned around and walked back to the living room. Xander stood there motionless for a moment, then gave a relieved, but muted, sigh. He was impressed that his gamble had paid off, but he didn't let it show, newly aware of just how much Spike actually picked up on.

* * *

After hours of exhausting research, Tara finally stumbled upon something. However, it wasn't something she was willing to share with mixed company. Every bit of information she could scrounge together led to the Osiris resurrection spell that Willow had cast weeks earlier being the main cause of the current situation. The only thing that tied in to the glamour was the fact that Buffy's spirit was supposed to be directed into her own body, and when Willow took on Buffy's form, Buffy's spirit thought that it had found the home it had been searching for. Tara could only guess that the resurrection spell was broken off a few seconds too early, preventing if from fully completing it's purpose, but late enough to draw Buffy's spirit out of it's resting place. There were two possible ways to solve the problem, but the witch refused to acknowledge one of them. So, after triple checking all of her sources, she finally spoke up.

"Guys, I h-have a so-solution." Tara's quiet voice went unheard by all except Anya, who had been helping her since the ex-deomn had arrived. The rest of the Scoobies were all talking with Buffy.

Buffy seemed to have acclimated to being back in a corporeal form, and was chatting away with the rest of the group. When no one answered Tara, she looked over to the group. She was still amazed by how everyone could find the silver lining, no matter the situation. Seeing them so happy, especially Dawn, made it easy to understand why they were less worried about Willow than she was. Earlier, when Xander had escorted Anya over to help, he had seen that something was bothering Tara, and had understood. He had summed it up in typical Xander fashion.

"Tara, don't worry. We brought Buffy back from the dead, we can put Willow back into her own head." It was a simple statement, but it had seemed to have done the trick. Now, though, as Tara continued to look at the group, she couldn't help but feel remorse, because she knew that someone in the living room wasn't going to be there much longer. The daylight breaking through a break in the normally drawn curtains and shinning upon Buffy didn't make it any easier. Tara repeated her statement, loud enough to get everyone's attention.

The rest of the gang had been busy talking and laughing, trying to put the surreal behind them. Spike had proudly recounted his tale of defeating Razor and his gang. Xander had, of course, brought up the fact that he had dealt the mortal, if not finishing, blow to the demon biker. Dawn had talked about the summer, with everyone working together and putting aside their differences. When Buffy had asked about Giles, the gang had told her about him leaving, and how hard that had been to deal with. They made plans to call him when it was later in the day 'over there'. Spike knew that it was later in the day in London than it was in Sunnydale, but he wasn't about to correct anyone. If the sunlight shining through the window was any indication, it was around 4 p.m. in jolly old England.

The sunlight. Everyone had seen it, casting a glow about Buffy. Xander thought that it was a sign that what they had done, bringing her back, was okay after all. He was sure everything was going to be alright. Dawn interpreted it as if the light had come back into her world of darkness and that everything would be just as warm and happy as the place Buffy had been. Spike, however, looked at it from a darker perspective. The sunlight was anathema to his kind, and it served to remind him that Buffy would forever be out of his reach. They were all startled when they heard Tara's voice cutting into their thoughts and conversation.

"Guys. I think I've found an answer." Spike was the only one to pick up that her voice wasn't as cheery as it should have been, given the statement, but he chalked it up to his own darkening mood.

"Alright, Tara, what did you find?" Buffy asked. Hearing that voice, so like Willow's and yet so different, gave Tara the strength to move forward.

"We've... we've got to send you back." Tara fought to keep the stutter out of her voice, to be strong for what was coming next. A startled silence prevailed for a moment before the commotion began.

"No! There's got to be another way," was Xander's adamant reply.

Spike fell back into a chair, stunned, with a lost look on his face. He began muttering, "not again... not again," and covered his face with his hands as he tried to gather his thoughts.

For her part, Buffy seemed to take it in stride, like it was just another fantastic event in a series of fantastic events. Anya, however, showed uncharacteristic emotion. She knitted her brows together. However, the statement that pained Tara the most was Dawn's.

"You can't bring her back and then take her away again. You... you can't!" Dawn thought that she didn't have any tears left in her after Buffy's return, and in the back of her mind she thought it odd that her eyes could still water as the tears began to fall down her face.

"I know how hard this is for everyone, but if we don't send Buffy back to where ever she was, she'll permanently take over Willow's body, and Willow's mind will be gone." Tears were falling down her own face now as Tara presented the choices to the Scoobies. Before anyone could say or do anything to respond, the Summers' doorbell rang.

"What now?" Xander exclaimed, marching for the door. He swung it open, looked the woman in the doorway over, and said," We're kinda busy right now. Whatever you're selling, come back later." He moved to shut the door before she stopped him with a clearing of her throat. Xander stopped and paid better attention to the woman, looking at her with a scrutinising eye. She was of medium build with short, brown hair. She wore a nice suit, tailored to fit her. A government suit.

"Oh no." Xander voice fell with his face as he realized who she was.

"My name is Ms. Cartwright, and I work for the Child Protective Services of California. I'm here to see Buffy and Dawn Summers."


	6. Glamour: Epilogue

**A/N – 01 July, 2013:** _At the time when this was originally released, I was again having schedule conflicts with my betas. Anaiya Illyria sent me back a beta draft after I had already published the chapter that was here before and I never got around to republishing the modified chapter. I have now taken her corrections and suggestions and put them where they properly belong; in the chapter below. I've also gone in and made it jive better with the later stories, writing wise. Enjoy!_

* * *

"Uhhh, give us just a minute. We're having a bad year around here." Xander's comment made Ms. Cartwright raise an eyebrow but she said nothing. Before Xander could close the door again, Buffy called out from the living room.

"It's alright Xander, let her in." Xander nodded his head back towards the living room and fully opened the front door, motioning for Ms. Cartwright to enter. She stepped in and immediately studied the place. Xander was thankful that Willow and Tara lived there so that the house was almost always clean. Ms. Cartwright didn't linger long before making her way to the living room. Her eyes scanned the dark living room and the fallen faces of everyone in attendance. Buffy put on a cheerful face and hoped that it looked genuine.

"Which of you is Dawn and which is Buffy?" Ms. Cartwright asked. To Spike, she seemed a little irritated already, but he couldn't tell if it was due to the poor lighting or the large number of people. Truth told, he thought that it was a likely combination of the two.

"I'm Buffy, and this is my sister, Dawn," Buffy said while pointing to Dawn, who did her best to follow Buffy's lead and put on her happy face.

"And who are the rest of these people?" Ms. Cartwright's voice seemed a tad more piqued than it had been before, and this time Spike wasn't the only one who caught it.

"I'm Xander, professional carpenter and glorified handyman," Xander quipped, hopping to lighten her mood. When Ms. Cartwright frowned even deeper, Xander got more serious. "This is my fiancée, Anya, local business owner and entrepreneur." All the Scoobies eyes shot up at Xander's mention of the word 'fiancée', and Xander mentally berated himself for letting that slip now, of all times. For her part, Anya practically beamed at the announcement, and she even stood up and moved to shake Ms. Cartwright's hand. Xander sent a sheepish look towards the rest of the gang, hoping to convey his best 'I'll explain later' face. After those introductions were in order, Ms. Cartwright looked to Spike and Tara, expectation clearly visible on her features.

"Oh, right. I'm Sp- I'm William." Spike caught himself and gave his human name while letting his upper class accent kick in, thinking that 'Spike' couldn't do much for Dawn's cause. "I am a business man, and I freelance a bit of poetry on the side." This time, everyone turned their wide-eyed gaze to Spike. One revelation after another continued to drop on the surprised Scoobies. Spike walked over and, keeping with his English gentleman training, bowed as he took Ms. Cartwright's hand. Ms. Cartwright flushed a bit, and seemed put off of her game, just as Spike had intended. Before she had completely recovered, Tara had gathered herself enough for an introduction.

"I'm T-Tara. I'm a student at S-Sunnydale University." Even the brief mention of college reminded Tara of Willow and their current situation. If Ms. Cartwright was expecting more out of Tara, she wasn't getting it. Ms. Cartwright seemed to pick up on the general sadness in the atmosphere, and Spike decided to use that to their advantage. Maintaining his air of an English gentleman, Spike took the initiative.

"You must forgive our manner of dress and forlorn demeanors, for we've just discovered one of our friends, Willow Rosenberg, is missing. She has not been seen since late last night, and all of us are sleep deprived from searching for her." Indeed, most of the Scoobies were still in their various sleepwears, with Anya and Spike being the exceptions. Tara's quite sob at the mention of Willow's name further accentuated his point. Ms. Cartwright's attitude immediately shifted from one of arrogance and slight hostility to one of understanding and sympathy. Spike smiled coyly when he was certain that she couldn't see him, allowing himself the satisfaction of a job well done.

"Oh, my word! If you would prefer, Ms. Summers, I can set up another meeting at a later-"

"No!" Ms. Cartwright was cut off by Buffy before she could finish her sentence. "I- I mean, since you're already here, I'd just like to get this over with." Buffy's swift declining of a rescheduling caught everyone off guard, especially Ms. Cartwright.

"As you wish, Ms. Summers. I commend you for your strength in the face of duress." Buffy smiled briefly, knowing that this woman had no idea what actual duress was. Ms. Cartwright pulled out a tablet and a pen from her briefcase. "Firstly, what are the living conditions here? Does everyone assembled live with you?"

"No. Anya and Xander have their own apartment, and Sp- William lives... elsewhere. Tara and Willow live here with me and Dawnie." Ms. Cartwright started writing on her tablet, and resumed questioning when she was done.

"And what do you do for a source of income, Ms. Summers?"

"Uh, I..." Buffy didn't know how to answer that. 'Living off of mom's insurance' just didn't seem to be the right answer. Before she could debate it any further, Spike spoke up again.

"We all dedicate some form of work or monetary assistance to the Summers family. Mr. Harris takes care of any household problems, while I take care of problems that arise outside of that purview. Our wayward Ms. Rosenberg works tech support and helps pay household expenses. Ms. Mclay works for the future Mrs. Harris at her business, and pays her way as well. Young Dawn is in school and the elder Ms. Summers, well," Spike paused here for a moment, locking his eyes on Buffy's before continuing. "She is the mortar that keeps us all together." Buffy smiled, conveying her thanks to the Vampire.

"Are you two... romantically involved?" Ms. Cartwright directed the question to Spike this time. A wistful and wishful smile briefly played across Spike's lips before he answered.

"No, no. We are merely... business partners." Spike cast another look towards Buffy before moving to sit down, giving Ms. Cartwright the hint to move on. Thankfully, she took it, and began a new line questioning. She turned to Dawn to involve her in the process.

"Dawn, how are you doing in school?"

"Oh, uh, not bad. Good, even. Tara and Willow help me with my homework and Xander makes sure I get to school every day. Not that I have an attendance problem. I haven't missed a single day all year!" Dawn seemed genuinely upbeat, even if she did ramble in general Dawn fashion. Ms. Cartwright nodded her head in agreement.

"Indeed, that's what your records show. Perfect attendance so far, showing vast improvement over last semester in both that area and in the academic arena." Noting the mild rebuke, Buffy spoke up.

"Oh, last semester. We had all kinds of problems. First mom died, and then Tara got really sick, Spike got injured, and then that weird thing with Glory."

"Glory?" Ms. Cartwright was confused by the last name on Buffy's list and if she had picked up on the slayer's use of Spike's name she didn't show it.

"Glory's what we called that strange earthquake that hit right before summer," Xander piped up. Boy, it really was strange."

"And- I didn't miss any class after that motorcycle gang came through town!" Dawn added with pride.

"Right, we've been taking every step to make sure Dawn stays all attendy at school. Not like when I went." The words had left Buffy's mouth before she could stop herself. Her eyes widened when she realized what she had said. "Not that I was a bad kid, there were just circumstances that made me miss class, and I was never good with the study side of things but-"

"Relax, Ms. Summers, there's no need to worry." Ms. Cartwright interrupted. "I've seen enough here, and I must say you are a remarkable young woman. Despite whatever deficiencies you yourself may have, you've surrounded you and your sister with a group of individuals who pick up the slack, as it were. You've got a family anyone could be proud of. I'll put in a word of commendation for you, and I look forward to seeing you all in 6 months for the next checkup."

Buffy breathed a sigh of relief and everyone else smiled. As Ms. Cartwright stood up, Dawn gave her a big hug, and whispered "Thank you" into her ear. When Ms. Cartwright had composed herself, everyone stood up to shake her hand, with Spike taking it in the same manner he had before. He moved to walk her to the door but had to jump back when Xander opened it. Ms. Cartwright shot him a questioning look.

"I have a mild sun allergy, Miss. I try to stay out of it as much as I can without some form of protection from the rays." She smiled at his response, and Dawn giggled. As she walked back to her car, Xander shut the door. As soon as the door was closed, people began talking at once.

"Xander! You're getting married!" Dawn squealed in excitement.

"You write poetry?" Xander directed towards Spike, earning him a "Sod off". However, Buffy shouted over the din to quiet them down.

"HEY! We've got more important issues to deal with." Everyone quickly sombered back up.

"Willow," Tara confirmed, and looked expectantly to Buffy. Buffy caught her eyes and nodded.

"I've got to go back."

"There's got to be another way!" Xander repeated his earlier statement.

"Xander, I'm dead, Willow's not, and this is her body. It's that simple". Buffy's response wasn't good enough for Xander.

"We've brought you back before."

"You brought me back, yeah. But that was different; doctors do that all the time. It was natural. This time, I've been dead for months, and I can remember the other side. My time's up." Buffy looked at every one of the Scoobies in turn. On Xander she read sadness, with Tara it was grim resolve, Dawn looked stricken, and Anya looked like Anya. Spike however, looked determined, a far cry away than he had looked moments earlier. Gone was the sadness and look of being lost, in their place was strength and maturity.

"She's right." Spike held up his hands to quiet any dissent, which looked likely from both Xander and Dawn. "Buffy's lived a good life, and gods know we've all missed her, and we'll miss her still. But she's died and moved on, and her being here is only the result of magic." Spike looked pointedly at Xander, who did his best to look innocent. "She's earned her reward, and she deserves to be sent back to it. Not to mention, it's kind of unfair to Willow to kick 'er out of her own body and replace her with Buffy." Spike's use of Willow's name was strategic, and it seemed to have the desired effect on Xander. As much as he cared for Buffy, Willow had been his best friend for his entire life. Xander finally seemed to accept that there really was no other way. He looked around the room, studied everyone carefully, before he stood up and walked over to Buffy. He hugged her tightly and let out a loud sob.

"We- we love you Buffy, and we'll miss you." Despite the gravity of the situation, Buffy smiled. Her friend had really grown up a lot, and it made her happy to see how strong he could be.

"You're strong Xander," Buffy said low enough where only he could hear her. "And you've got to keep being strong. They'll need you, now more than ever." Xander nodded, tears running down his face, and moved away so that the others could follow his example. Tara walked over next and hugged Buffy.

"I wish it didn't have to be this wa-way".

"I know. It's not your fault. Get the spell ready, it's almost time." Buffy said encouragingly. Tara walked over to the table to get the proper texts and tools she would need. Anya walked over to Buffy next and wrapped her up tight, uprising most of the Scoobies.

"I used to travel the higher planes, back when I delivered Vengeance. I know you'll be happy." Buffy was a little shocked by Anya's uncharacteristic display of emotion, but did her best not to show it.

"Xander deserves a good woman. You take care of him," Buffy stated before realising that she should add something more Anya-like to her statement. "And make him lots of money." Anya's eyes lit up and she smiled wide. Buffy waited for her next hug to come, but she realised that Dawn wasn't going to get up and Spike was staring off into space. She walked over to Dawn, who was quietly crying. As Buffy walked closer, the crying got louder. As Buffy embraced her sister, Dawn began to wail.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no-"

"Shhhh. It's okay Dawnie. Shhhhhh. I've got to go. Mom is waiting for me, and you know how impatient she can get." Buffy's attempt at levity worked, as Dawn managed to hiccup out a laugh.

"Y-yeah, she never did like to be kept w-waiting" Dawn stuttered out. She managed to flash Buffy a smile.

"I love you Dawnie." Buffy stood and looked towards her final well-wisher. "Spike, I-"

"The best of us are dead and gone; the rest are left to soldier on." Spike's brief poetic line said everything he needed to. He stared deep into Buffy's eyes before he continued. "I remember my promise, to keep her safe. I know I failed you then, but I swear to you, it will not happen again. Not while I'm still..." Spike paused, searching for the right word to replace 'alive', and settled on, "here". Buffy had no immediate words, so she chose instead to kiss Spike. There was little passion, but Spike knew from prior experience that it was full of gratitude. It didn't last long, but it lasted long enough to convey its meaning. Buffy stared at Spike to make sure he got it, and he nodded his understanding.

"Thank you, William." She said softly, before turning to the group en masse. "You've all got to be strong. You've protected this town from all sorts of beasties without me, and you've got to keep doing it. The people here counted on me, even if they didn't know it, and now they're counting on you. I love you all, more than you know. Make me proud, I'll be watching." Buffy looked to Tara and nodded. Tara had prepared everything while Buffy was finishing her goodbyes, and only had to say the power words to complete the spell. Tara spoke in Latin, whose meaning was lost on everyone else but Anya, and when she was done a bright glow emanated from Buffy. Buffy started to feel herself disconnecting from Willow's body, and knew immediately that she had one more thing to say.

"Tell Willow that I love her!" Buffy shouted, before she was completely gone. As soon as she finished her sentence, the glow dimmed down into a ball that floated out of Willow and hovered there briefly. After the glow left Willow, the red haired woman started to fall, but Tara was ready for it, and held her tight. The glow moved to hover in front of everyone assembled briefly before it circled the room three times and shot harmlessly through the roof, out into the sunlit sky.

The Scoobies stood silent, stunned, before a loud sobbing broke into everyone's thoughts. Everyone looked toward the cause of the noise and realised that it was Willow. Tara sat her down on the couch and held her tight as she cried the tears that no one else had left. Xander soon moved over to sit next to her, and joined Tara in holding her tight, whispering soothing words into her ear. Dawn followed suit, and even Anya moved to lend her support to the stricken red head. After Spike moved over and put his hand on Willow's shoulder, Xander had an epiphany. Everything was going to be all right.

~To Be Continued in _**Redemption: Family**_~


End file.
